the north pool

By Rajiv Joseph
Directed by James Yost

Khadim has no idea why he's been called into the Vice Principal’s office at Sheffield High. At first, Vice Principal Danielson is cagey, using a minor violation to keep the boy at school for detention. It doesn’t take long for tensions to mount around a crime that Khadim may (or may not) have committed. The truth is ever-shifting in what amounts to a game of cat-and-mouse. As the clock winds down on the last hours of the semester, both Danielson and Khadim must carefully maneuver hauntingly unexpected revelations. The North Pool is a psychological drama that explores the complexities of racial and cultural profiling and personal accountability.

“The North Pool is about the power of guilt,” comments Co-Artistic Director James Yost. “The two characters who carry this story are fraught with guilt and the heaviness of responsibility as they discover that the one thing that connects them is the suicide of another student they both knew in very different ways. As in this season’s first two productions, Katrina: Mother-in-Law of ‘Em All and Recent Tragic Events, we see these characters traverse feelings of loss and emerge on the other side completely changed.”

Jeff Award nominations for:

Production - Play
Director - Play: James Yost
Actor in a Principal Role - Play: Salar Ardebili
Scenic Design: Greg Pinsoneault

The Artists

"Two exquisitely nuanced performances. . . a very guilty pleasure".
- Stage & Cinema

CAST

Salar Ardebili - Khadim
Rob Frankel - Dr. Danielson

NP Scene Photos

PRODUCTION TEAM

Sarah Gise assistant director
Mealah Heindenreich prop design
Noël Huntzinger costume design
Morgan Lake sound design
Greg Pinsoneault scenic design
Rob Stepek lighting design
Beep Trefts stage manager

Samantha Dzirko production manager
Lisa Giebler technical director

Christopher Aaron Knarr house manager /marketing/social media
David Rosenberg press relations

Emily Schwartz production photography

Cast Bios

Featured

Jul 9, 2016

SALAR ARDEBILI, Khadim

Jul 9, 2016

Coming off of Yasmina’s Necklace (16th Street Theatre), he is thrilled to be working on another complex and touching story. Salar is also an actor-combatant recognized by the Society of American Fight Directors and has had the privilege of training with some of the best teachers there are. Some of his indie-film credits include: Lazy (FoulMouth Films), Hayati (Les Tres Haut Productions), and The Ants Go Marching (Globe Valley Pictures). When not in rehearsal or on set you can find him wandering on the streets taking photos or nonchalantly going from one movie-theater to another catching movies all-day-long. Check out some of his photos on instagram @lepetitsalar. He is represented by Shirley Hamilton Talent Agency.

"Ardebili’s Kahdim bristles with adolescent bravado . . . and its accompanying angst. If he’s hiding things, he has his reasons." - Stage & Cinema

Jul 9, 2016

ROB FRANKEL, Dr. Danielson

Jul 9, 2016

Rob is delighted to be making his debut with Interrobang Theatre Project. He has acted professionally in over 70 plays in various places in the Midwest and East including New York, North Carolina, Maine, Illinois, and Minnesota. Locally, he has performed in theaters such as BoHo Theatre, Metropolis Performing Arts Centre, Steel Beam, and Citadel. A University of Michigan graduate, some of Rob’s favorite roles include Noises Off (Lloyd Dallas), Long Day’s Journey into Night (James Tyrone), The Rainmaker (Starbuck, H.C. Curry), The Fantasticks (Hucklebee), Talley’s Folly (Matt), A Walk in the Woods (John Honeyman), and On Golden Pond (Norman Thayer). Rob is also a playwright with over thirty published plays including his popular comedy Whodunit...and to Whom. He recently retired from IBM to pursue a Masters in teaching and works as a tutor of English, drama, and public speaking. Finally, as a native Chicagoan, Rob loves his Bulls, Bears, and Blackhawks, and is thrilled by his Cubs run to the World Series this year!

“Frankel plays the earnest but possibly xenophobic vice principal with disarming affability. He’s breezy,chatty and very dangerous, good cop and bad cop rolled into one nasty questioner.” - Stage & Cinema

Jul 9, 2016

Production Team

Featured

Jul 9, 2016

JAMES YOST, Director (Co-Artistic Director)

Jul 9, 2016

With BareBones Theatre Group (Charlotte, NC) for which he served as artistic director for 12 years, Yost has staged over 50 plays and has won several awards including THEATRE PERSON OF THE YEAR in 2001. Selected credits include: Mr. Marmalade,Psycho Beach Party, and Debbie Does Dallas: The Musical. The Graduate, The Play About the Baby, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Drift, Ugly Art, bash; the latter-day plays,Squirrels, The Wizard of Oz, Lend Me A Tenor, True West, The Pitchfork Disney, andNoises Off. He has produced several new play festivals and was the co-producer of Charlotte’s CITY STAGE SUMMER PLAY FESTIVAL. For ITP, Yost has directed Orange Flower Water (Jeff nomination for best supporting actor, Joseph Wiens), Ibsen is Deadand last season's critically acclaimed REALLY REALLY. Yost has also taught acting, directing, production design and film at the high school and collegiate level. He is published in Teaching Theatre Journal, a publication of Dramatics Magazine.

Jul 9, 2016

GEORGETTE VERDIN, Co-Artistic Director

Jul 9, 2016

Along with working for Interrobang and being a freelance director, Georgette is also the founding theatre teacher at Polaris Charter Academy, an Expeditionary Learning School in West Humboldt Park, and adjunct Speech Faculty at Wilbur Wright College. In addition to assistant directing last season's Really Really and Owners; she also directed ITP's first and second shows of our current season: Katrina: Mother-in-Law of 'Em All and Jeff Recommended Recent Tragic Events. Georgette holds a Masters in Directing from Roosevelt University and a B.A. in Theatre Performance from McNeese State University in Lake Charles, LA.

Jul 9, 2016

RAJIV JOSEPH, Playwright

Jul 9, 2016

Joseph's Broadway play, Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo, was a 2010 Pulitzer Prize finalist for drama, and also awarded a grant for Outstanding New American Play by the National Endowment for the Arts. Joseph's New York productions include Gruesome Playground Injuries (Second Stage Theatre, 2011); Animals Out of Paper (Second Stage Theatre, summer 2008); The Leopard and the Fox (adaptation), Alter Ego, (fall 2007);Huck & Holden (Cherry Lane Theatre, 2006); All This Intimacy (Second Stage Theatre, 2006). World premieres of new plays this year, include The North Pool at Theatre Works in Palo Alto; The Lake Effect at Crossroads Theatre in New Jersey; and The Medusa Body at the Alley Theatre. He received his BA in Creative Writing from Miami University and his MFA in Dramatic Writing from NYU's Tisch School of the Arts. He served for three years in the Peace Corps in Senegal.

Jul 9, 2016

SAMANTHA R. DZIRKO, Production Manager
Samantha is grateful to be doing her 2nd show with Interrobang Theatre Project. Production Management credits include:Really Really (Interrobang Theatre Project), Workshop Production Manager at Williamstown Theatre Festival, and Production Management Intern at Actors Theatre of Louisville.

LISA GIEBLER, Technical Director
Lisa is a freelance technical director, carpenter and mixed media artist in the Chicagoland area. She works at Northbrook Theatre regularly and has also done work at Harper College, Chicago Folks Operetta, and Chicago Dramatists. This is her third production with Interrobang.

MEALAH HEIDENREICH, Property Design
Some of Mealah’s previous prop designs include Caged Dames and Miracle! with Hell in a Handbag Productions, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum with Porchlight Music Theatre, Really Really with Interrobang Theatre Project andHello, Dolly! with Light Opera Works. Mealah is an ensemble member with Hell in a Handbag Productions.

NOEL HUNTZINGER, Costume Design
Noel is an Interrobang Theatre Project company member for which she has designed costumes for Really Really, Owners, Ibsen is Dead, The Pitchfork Disney, Terminus, and Speaking in Tongues. She is also an artistic associate with Filament Theatre Ensemble where she designed Snow Queen and Hank Williams: Lost Highway. Other favorite credits inlude: Mistakes Madeline Made and Permanent Image with Livewire Theatre and Happy Now? with Shattered Globe Theatre.

CHRISTOPHER AARON KNARR, House Manager & Social Media Guru
Originally from South Bend, IN and relocated to beautiful Chicago, Christopher graduated from Indiana University with a B.A. in Theatre & Drama, and studied abroad with The Gaiety School of Acting in Dublin, Ireland. His last credits included Interrobang Theatre Project's previous productions of Terminus, The Pitchfork Disney and Ibsen is Dead as Assistant Stage Manager. He was also House Manager for these productions as well as last season's Owners, Really Really, and this season's Katrina: Mother-in-Law of 'em All.

MORGAN LAKE, Sound Design
Morgan Lake is a Chicago-based sound designer. She is very excited to be working with Interrobang Theatre Project for the first time. Recent projects include designing The Terrible (The New Colony) and engineering It's a Wonderful Life (American Blues Theater). Upcoming work includes engineering The Life of Galileo (Remy Bumppo Theatre Company) and Little Shop of Horrors (American Blues Theater) this spring.

GREG PINSONEAULT, Scenic Design
Greg Pinsoneault is a Chicago based designer who recently received a BFA in Scenic Design from The Theatre School at DePaul University. Chicago credits include works with Griffin Theatre, Profiles Theatre, Interrobang Theatre Project, Rasaka Theatre Company, The Agency Theatre Collective, Cock and Bull, and Underscore Theatre Company. He has also assisted on productions at The Cort Theatre (NYC), The Broadhurst Theatre, Glimmerglass Opera, The Goodman Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, The Paramount Theatre, and Drury Lane Oakbrook. Greg was the recipient of The 2014 Theatre School Michael Merritt Award and the 2015 USITT W Oren Parker Undergraduate Scene Design Award. Examples of his work can be found at GPScenic.com.

ROB STEPEK, Lighting Design
Born and raised in Chicago, Rob is more than excited to be back in the city and working with Interrobang Theatre Project for the first time. He holds a 2015 MFA in lighting design from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a 2012 BS in theatrical design and production from Illinois State University. Both locations allowed Rob to experiment and find his design aesthetic and he is more than happy to be able to continue with his professional career with a great team on The North Pool.

BEEP TREFTS, Stage Manager
Beep is excited to be working on his first show with Interrobang Theatre Project. His recent projects include Ten Dollar House (Pride Films and Plays), The Addams Family (Actors Training Center), and The Outfit (Piccolo). He is a graduate of Hofstra University with a focus in stage management. Many thanks to Lee, the Llamas, his family, and the cast and crew ofThe North Pool.

ZOE VERDIN, Website & Graphic Design
Zoë Verdin is a freelance graphic designer and Thai masseuse. She received her undergraduate degree in Studio Art from Carleton College in 2006 and is currently enrolled at the Thai Bodywork School of Thai Massage in Evanston. She has worked as scenic designer/carpenter, costume designer and muralist on a number of projects at Polaris Charter Academy, including Wiley and the Hairy Man, Alice in Wonderland, and A Midsummer Night's Dream. She is delighted to be a part of Interrobang Theatre Project's incredible company of artists.